Of some of the things that this government did, as it is for the third time they are doing it, the honouring of those who helped us during our liberation struggle is among the very best. Last Saturday, the 3rd phase of the honour ceremony took place with the president and the prime minister bestowing the honours. Like everyone else in the country who takes immense pride in the events of 1971 and especially as a freedom fighter, we would like to congratulate the prime minister, the relevant ministers and all those officials and private organisations and individuals who were involved in collecting, locating and finally bringing all these people to Bangladesh and honouring them the way we did.
We have no hesitation in saying that other than Sheikh Hasina's government no one else would have done it on the scale, dignity and fanfare that it was ultimately done. We are certain that we reflect the sentiments of the millions of freedom fighters when we say what a good feeling it is to know that we have the courtesy, the sensitivity and the good sense to thank our friends who came to our assistance at the most crucial time of our nation's life. Though late, it has happened and it gives us a feeling that we are part of a civilised world that knows how to be grateful. We repeat, it is a wonderful feeling.
The question naturally comes to mind: why did it take us so long to thank those who helped us gain our freedom? However unpalatable it may sound, the truth is that in the post-1975 period successive governments have played politics with our own freedom struggle, unquestionably the most glorious part of our history. Obviously the murder of Bangabandhu, supreme leader of the freedom struggle, set us on a self-destructive path. Those who killed him had to denigrate him and the movement he led in order to justify their heinous act.
It must be said that coming to power, first of Khandaker Mustaque, then General Ziaur Rahman and finally of General Ershad, launched us on a deliberate and diabolical process of distorting our liberation war history. None of them ever owned that glorious legacy of our independence struggle-Mustaque because he did not want it, Ershad because he was not a part of it and Ziaur Rahman because he betrayed it.
General Ziaur Rahman's case is the most disappointing. History gave him the opportunity to carve out a place in the hearts of our freedom loving people not only because he was a sector commander and a valiant freedom fighter but also because he had, in Bangabandhu's name, made an announcement of the declaration of independence on the 27th of March, 1971. It was an opportunity that every soldier would die for and every freedom fighter would crave for --- a chance to become part of history in such a unique and glorious manner. But he betrayed that glory and honour by siding with the killers of Bangabandhu by not taking any action against them which his oath as a soldier made obligatory for him. After assuming power he resurrected the political forces that had openly and criminally opposed our liberation and rehabilitated in politics some of the most infamous and notorious collaborators of that period.
Among his most despicable, shameful and ignominious acts was the passing of the Indemnity Act that made us the only country in the world that gave constitutional protection to self-confessed killers.
This is neither the time nor the place to evaluate Ziaur Rahman's legacy but suffice it to say that history will judge him extremely harshly for restoring to mainstream politics the very forces that helped the Pakistan army to commit genocide on our people.
Today it is perhaps impossible for most people to believe that there was a time in Bangladesh, not so long ago, when we could not even blame the Pakistani army for massacring our people and used the term “Hanadar Bahini” to identify the culprits that killed and maimed our people and our freedom fighters, that Mukti Bahini was not a term that we could use openly and freely and that they were suspect as 'agents subverting our sovereignty'. It was not unusual to be in public places and hear people openly and proudly say, “I am a razakar”.
Obviously the claimants to power who created such political environment and those who follow the same political legacy could not be expected to honour foreign friends who helped us in waging war against those who wanted to obliterate our nation.
It was such a wonderful feeling to see them all together. Most of them have greatly advanced in age, some in wheelchairs and many others needing help in moving around. It was obvious that our recognition, though belated, of their timely and crucially needed help pleased them immensely. Most of them never expected this honour and hardly ever hoped to visit the land in whose liberation struggle they played a part. They were very happy to be here and felt a special bond with us and took pride in the progress we made.
Those who were here, we would welcome them in our homes at any time if they were ever to revisit us. But if we were never to see them again, let it be known to all, in every part of the world, that we as a nation, as a people, as a country, as a part of the freedom loving world, will always remember them with humility and gratitude for their most generous and courageous help at the moment of our birth as a free country.
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